


My Little Prince

by IloveHajishun111



Series: My one and only [1]
Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, OOC, Rated M for some graphic violence, also a tease, byleth is an idiot, my attempt at humor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-24
Updated: 2019-09-24
Packaged: 2020-10-27 12:14:19
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,178
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20760188
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IloveHajishun111/pseuds/IloveHajishun111
Summary: Maybe Sothis intentionally left out this one detail about his power or maybe she didn't even know it existed in the first place but the moment he triggered the Pulse, something happened.'What was that? A kid screaming?'That kid…why does he look so much like Dimitri?The moment Byleth laid his eyes on the boy, he flinched at how familiar he was to Dimitri, with same golden hair and icy blue eyes, the boy looked exactly like a younger version of his most dear student.---Or that time when Byleth tried to use the Divine Pulse and it took him back 10 years in the past instead.





	My Little Prince

Byleth was never a man to obey orders or listen to warnings, he would charge into battle without planning someday just because he was bored and many times almost got himself killed, his father knew this very well so did Sothis. Not once that the poor Goddess did not find herself worried about this vessel-reincarnation-descendant of her.

‘I will die of heart attack someday because of you!’ She once said that to the stubborn child, not that she was alive in the first place, and Byleth just nodded and silently listen to her lectures for hours.

That said, he shouldn't be surprised to find himself surrounded by the Imperial rebellion force fighting for his life with him and his student, Ashe, who was the only one available at the time, in this dreaded forest near territory of Sreng, further north from Fhirdiad.

Not that he had any other choice since that damn Lion just kept dragging him to their shared bedroom and doing 'R18' things to him all night long whenever he got the chance. Thinking about that specific student of his, who recently became his finance and soon-to-be husband, made the pain in his hip hurt even more.

_ Curse you, Dimitri! _

'You say that but you can't help spoiling your Prince, do you. Stop being so stubborn!'

He ignored her words to dodge another attack aiming at his abdomen and struck his opponent with a clean cut on the neck.

The rush of the battle always helped to ease the knot in his heart, whatever that was, be it the stress he felt the first time he came to teach at the Monastery or the burden of the war later, this was his method of releasing himself. 

This time though, the reason for this suicide mission was for him to run away from Dimitri's love.

It was too much, too intense and too suffocating for someone like him, an ex-mercenary who was granted the name 'Ashen Demon', an emotionless demon.

He knew very well that Dimitri was special to him, too special that the thought of leaving the man hurt him to his very core, but still, the way his former student expressed his love for him was...overwhelming. He still could not get used to it.

Yes, they had exchanged rings and their wedding was coming up soon.

He remembered saying that Dimitri was special to him, still, he could not utter the word 'love' to his fiancee.

Love...Is my feelings for Dimitri love?

'Yes, it is. Stop doubting yourself! Or do you need another love lecture from me?'

'No, I'm good. That is the answer I have to find for myself'

'Well, suit yourself then but...LOOK OUT!'

The split-seconds he spent talking to Sothis had him loosen up his guard, enough for an assassin to sneak up on him and stab him in the back.

"Grah..." Byleth groaned in pain, it was a long time since he was hurt this bad.

'What are you waiting for? Go Back and take him out before he gets to you!'

'Right.' He answered the Goddess and immediately activated the Divine Pulse.

"What the....!"

Maybe Sothis intentionally left out this one detail about his power or maybe she didn't even know it existed in the first place but the moment he triggered the Pulse, something happened.

The pull of gravity from the Pulse, which tore and reshape reality for him to turn back time, was much more intense than usual. This time the pull didn't feel like it turned him back to just a few seconds before his ambush, but it was much, much longer than that. The scenery flashed in front of him started increased his speed just like the feeling when he was riding on a fine steed and the horse broke into a full gallop. Within the next few seconds, everything around him was passing by too fast for his naked eyes to see, though one thing he was sure, he was not in his present time anymore.

'What is happening, Sothis?' Byleth asked, a little frantically.

'I don't know...it looks like the Pulse has a little dysfunction. Maybe it's not a good idea for you to use it when you are greatly injured then...'

'Now you tell me!' He yelled at the goddess, he never dared to do that to her before but this time... he felt scared, for the first time in his life the fable ever-calming Professor was scared, scared that he had been transported into some unknown era and never be able to see Dimitri again...

That very thought left a sharp pang in his heart.

'Really? It only takes a few decades wrong into the past or the future for you to realize how much you need your Lion Prince? You really are...'

Sothis stopped her scolding mid-sentence once the Pulse eventually came to a stop, revealing the same scenery just like before, but Ashe and the rebellion enemies were nowhere to be seen. Byleth quickly looked down at his wound and it was gone too.

'Hm, doesn't look different though. Maybe we just went back a few hours or days.'

'I hope so.' Byleth answered her but deep down, he had a bad feeling about this but right now he silently hoped Ashe could manage to get away from the rebellion and get some help.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

'What was that? A kid screaming?'

Byleth immediately dashed toward the edge of the forest, where he could spot smoke and flame burning high up in the sky, his guts coiled in his stomach, he knew something bad was about to happen.

He almost choked on the smell scorching the area the moment he got near the source of the scream. He knew that smell all too well, it was similar to that of Embarr, the capital of the Empire when they invade it to put an end to Edelgard's maddening plan, the smell of burning flesh mixed with blood.

Upon arriving at the perimeter, he froze dead as his eyes took in the hellish scene before him. Corpses, dozens or even hundreds of them lying scattered across the field. They were all killed in the most horrible way, limbs tore out, heads severed, some were cut in half with the other half still alive enough to groan and asked for help. Blood splashed and painted the area in red, enough to form a small river flowing to where Byleth was standing.

'What in the world! We need to find that child quick!'

Byleth didn't have time to listen to Sothis's urging as he quickly he dodged a knife coming at him as an assassin tried to sneak attack him from behind. He quickly disposed of the thug and quickly cut his way through waves of enemies that arrived upon spotting his presence.

Once he got closer to the heart of the battle, he finally noticed the clothes the ill-fated victims were wearing before they died.

_ Faerghus royal crest! _

Byleth whipped his head around and spotted the banner of the Holy Kingdom on several of the wagons.

_ What is this? An ambush on the nobles? _

But again, he had given no time to figure out the enemy's scheme as he heard that scream again.

"NOOOOO!!!!!! FATHER!!!!!!!!!!!!! GLENN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Then he saw it with his own eyes, a man who looked like an older version of Dimitri, getting his head chopped off his neck by a clean-cut from an Armor knight, and along with him was a young man, who looked an awful lot like Felix, suffered the same fate. Their severed heads rolled down on the ground and stopped at the feet of a boy, the screaming boy that he was searching for. 

The poor child was standing right in the middle of the fight surrounding by countless corpses, his big eyes wide open as he stared down horrifyingly at the freshly cut heads of his dear ones.

“!!”

_ That kid…why does he look so much like Dimitri? _

The moment Byleth laid his eyes on the boy, he flinched at how familiar he was to Dimitri, with same golden hair and icy blue eyes, the boy looked exactly like a younger version of his most dear student.

_ Could it be? _

The thought that his Lion Prince had a kid out of wedlock with another woman when he went missing immediately disappeared as soon as he saw the two knights coming closer to the boy. His body suddenly moved on its own at that moment as he whipped the Sword of Creator out and slashed it across the field, hitting them in the back. The knights were caught off guard, their body stiffened a little before falling on the ground, lifelessly.

Byleth wasted no time to rush toward the boy, just in time to parry a stray arrow aiming at them away and quickly pulled the frightened boy behind his back, shielding him from another incoming attack.

The fight didn't take long since their leaders, the two knights had been defeated, he could see hesitation and disorganization in their movements and he took that chance to slay them all at once.

When Byleth was busy dealing with the remaining thugs charging at him, he failed to notice how still the boy standing behind him or how astounded those blue eyes stared at him, at how unusual his green hair glowed in the flickering of the flame or how graceful yet deadly his swordsmanship was.

To Byleth, he was just acting on his instincts as a teacher to protect a helpless child but to that little noble boy, that was the first time he witnessed the power of a God.

_ Who is this man? _

_ How can this man beat them without getting any blood on him? What is this power? _

_ If he can kill them this easily...why didn’t he come sooner? _

_ Why does he save me for...why don’t him just let me die with them??!! _

"Who are you?" The boy asked, mumbling, after seeing Byleth finished the last of the enemies and slowly turned around to face him, still dazed at the beauty of the unknown man who just rescued him.

Byleth also observed the boy from head to toes, his heart ached a little when the thought this boy was Dimitri's illegitimate son crossed his mind again.

'Are you Dumb!' Sothis's voice suddenly rang in his head, 'Why does your intelligent always drop to zero whenever it is involved that Prince of yours? This boy **IS** your Prince, you dummy, well his younger self of course. By now, you should have realized he Pulse has us traveled back to 10 years in the past and this must be the event of the Tragedy of Duscur.'

_ What? 10 years in the past? And...This kid is Dimitri?! _

"I ask who are you? Why do you save me?" The younger Dimitri asked again, his eyes red with tears and sorrow, "Why don't you let me die with them?"

Byleth thought about it a little before answering, "I'm a mercenary your Father hired to protect you."

He was taken aback when the little prince suddenly ran toward him and grabbed the front of his robe, screaming with tears rolling down his cheeks, "Then where were you when they killed them? Where were you when they chopped off my father’s head, burnt my stepmother alive, and Glenn too...With your skill, you could kill them off easily...so...WHERE WERE YOU WHEN WE NEEDED YOU?"

Byleth hissed a little when the boy hit him with those small yet powerful fists.

_ Damn you kid, even Dimitri never dare to hit me like that...Just you wait, Dimitri, I'll return the favor when I get back. _

'Now, now. Calm down. You can't do anything to the people of the past or their future may change forever.'

'Change forever...that means...'

'Yes, like right now if we don't get the boy out of here, he'll never grow up to be your beloved Lion Prince, get it?'

Byleth immediately removed the boy's hands out of his robe and tugged him away from the burning flame that almost caught up to them, "Let's get you out of here."

"NO!" The younger self of his student yanked his hand away from Byleth's grip and screamed, "Let me die with them! I don't want to continue living on without them! Please...just let me perish here..."

Hearing those words and seeing the way the prince buried his face in his hands made him remembered how on that dreaded day, Dimitri desperately clung onto his hand as the rain fell down his weary face, his words weak and raw with emotions, "Your hands are so warm...Have they always been?"

And that was also the day he finally dragged his dearest student out of his darkness and back to his old self.

_ I spent so much time saving your future self not to have you die on me this early, kid. _

Despite his stoic thinking, the hug Byleth gave the boy was much gentler, and for once, the poor prince stopped crying, instead, he stared dumbfounded as the sun cast its last sunray on the unusual green locks, making the man look like something out of this world. The young prince slowly raised his hands to hug the older man back, fearing he would disappear into the light if he didn't.

"I'm not giving up on you,"Byleth said the same words he had said to the older Dimitri and gave the small figure in his lap a strong squeeze.

Seeing the prince had calmed down a little, he let go of the bewildered boy to caress the tear-stained cheeks while keeping his gaze locked with those big sky blue eyes, "Listen well, kid. Someone has told me this when I lost...the person who's dear to me many years ago. Your family, they're gone but the burden of their works remain, you have to continue their legacy. That’s why you need to live, for them, so that your dear ones won't have any regrets in the other world."

This was probably the longest sentence Byleth had ever said to anyone but by the way those blue eyes lightened up he know they were working. His lips curved into a genuine smile once he saw the same astonishment and admiration expression on the boy's face, just like that of his Dimitri when he dragged the taller man down for a kiss, "Look deep into your heart and you may find the answer there."

For the young heir of the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus, the mercenary’s smile was the most mesmerizing and ethereal thing he had ever seen in his life. For all he knew, the smile from the strange but beautiful man on that day had become his only source of strength, his mere reason to keep on living in the darkest times to come.

"Now, let's get you somewhere safe," Byleth said and this time he didn't wait for the perplexed prince to reply before dragging him away from this hellhole.

\--

'What now, Sothis?' Byleth asked as he led the way through the dense forest to look for a good resting spot, it was getting dark. Occasionally he would look back to check on the little Dimitri. The prince never said a word to him since then, only observing him silently from behind, Byleth didn't mind though, he was a man of few words after all.

'Hum...If I recall correctly, the prince told you what will happen next, did he not? He said the knight who saved him took him running until he met up with, Rodrigue, the Fraldarius Lord, who would protect the boy from now on.'

'That's right. I remember. All we have to do now is taking him to Lord Rodrigue.' Byleth replied, feeling a little less troubled. Fraldarius was right beside the capital city, Fhirdiad, about three days journey from where they were and if he was lucky enough he could find a good horse to make their trip faster.

Though with Dimitri's condition...he didn't seem to endure any grave injury but the event earlier must have left some kind of trauma to the young prince's mind, Byleth knew this all too well, the pain and suffering the boy would endure for the rest of his life. Even so, he let out of quiet sigh, this little Dimitri was just as stubborn as the older one, trying to act tough and all but Byleth could see the exhaustion etching in the boy's eyes.

"Are you tired?" He stopped to ask the boy, who looked startlingly at him.

"Don't worry about me. Let's just keep going." The young prince shook his head and forced himself to move but his walk suddenly became staggered as he almost fell on the hard ground if not for Byleth catching him just in time.

"I'm fine..." The prince muttered a protest but then faltered once he saw the stern look on the older man's face. A blush painted across his pale cheeks as he realized how close they were.

"Your legs are shaking," Byleth pointed out and then kneeled to offer his back to the dazed boy, "Climb on. I'll walk the rest of the way."

"But...I...You don't need to..." The poor prince's face was now the color of a boiled lobster but one look from those green pair of eyes, so beautiful yet full of authority, he could do nothing but comply.

"Good boy," Byleth praised and lifted little Dimitri off the ground.

This Dimitri was not heavy at all, that fact surprised him a little. Seeing how the boy's cheeks became blood-red by their closed contract, he couldn't help but let out a slight chuckle.

_ How cute! _

"What's your name?" Little Dimitri suddenly asked, making him flinch a little.

'Don't tell him your real name! Knowing your name now will mess up the future!'

'Right...What should I tell him?' Byleth asked, feeling panic for the first time in a while, a few names passed through his mind but the one slipped out of his mouth was...

"Eisner...My name is Eisner." He repeated, ignoring how Sothis dramatically face palmed in his head.

'Well it's technically half my name so I’m only half-lying.’'

"Eisner..." The boy nodded his head and softly said, "Thank you for saving my life."

With that said, the young prince of Faerghus rested his head on the man's broad shoulders as his consciousness slowly slipped away. Somehow, he felt safe in this man's presence even though they just met.

\--

"GRAHHHH! Father, mother, Glenn... don't hate me! Please don't hate me! I didn't want to live! I...I want to go with you too...but..."

"Are you alright, Little Prince?"

Dimitri cracked open his eyes and stared at the mercenary kneeling in front of him, blinking away his tears. Darkness had cast its shadow on the forest, everything around him was dark except for the campfire a few distances nearby and the man's glowing green hair and eyes.

"I'm...I'm fine." He mumbled and sit up from the bundle of clothes on the ground, blushing a little when he realized it was the cloak the man wore earlier.

"Are you hungry? Come and eat. I just went hunting." Despite the cold demeanor and distant words, the young prince didn't feel scared of this stoic mercenary, in fact, he had a desire to get closer to the older man, to know him better, to be bathed in that gentle light.

They ate in silence, Byleth was a man of few words anyway, it was always the others who initiated the conversation first. Dimitri quietly observed the older male from where he sat, taking in way the campfire flame's shadow dancing on the flawless face or the way those long lashes flickered in the wind.

_ So beautiful. _

A moment later, once they finished their meal and done cleaning up, Dimitri eventually found his courage and asked timidly, "Can I call you Eisner?"

"Yes, you can." Byleth nodded and regard the boy with curiosity in his eyes, waiting for him to open up.

"I just had a dream about them. They were loathing me...hating me for being alive." The prince shut his eyes, his small shoulders shaking a little, before opened them again, this time, all the fear and sorrow disappeared and replaced by a firm determination flashing in those big blue eyes, "But I've been thinking about what you said. I have to live for them, to continue what they have left. I will carry their wish, their legacy with me from now on. That is my decision. And I want to thank you for your kind words earlier, Eisner."

With that said, Dimitri cracked open a small smile to his savior, who seemed to have taken aback a little by that, and then continued, his tone suddenly changed into a low, ragged groan, "That being said...I have to live...to...to...for them..."

Byleth knew full well what the boy wanted to say, his stomach coiled seeing the way those innocent blue eyes suddenly oozing with hatred and thirst for blood. He knew what this pure child would become in the future, knew how much pain he would suffer, both mentally and physically, and he also knew, he couldn't do anything to help, nothing but this...

"!!"

Still drowning in his abhorrence, Dimitri didn't notice the mercenary had come closer to him until he was being pulled into a tight hug, warm arms wrapped firmly around his smaller form.

"Eisner, what...what are you doing?" The young heir of Faerghus blushed feverishly with the sudden contract, he could faintly feel the older man's mouth slightly touching his hair. Even his father and stepmother didn't usually do this to him nor did the servants or knights in the castle would dare to touch him like that, only this man...

"The night wind is cold and you're shaking." The older man answered simply. Before the prince could utter any reply, Byleth gently pulled the boy down to lay on the ground with him and wrapped his cloak securely around both of them.

Dimitri hid his burning face in the mercenary's firm chest and refused to lift his face, feeling his heart racing in his chest at their current position, his head rested on the man's shoulder, warm breath on his face and those lips were only inches away from kissing his forehead.

"You should rest. I will keep watch."

Suddenly Dimitri's eyelids felt heavy after hearing the man said those words, he didn't realize how exhausted he was until now, his body mindlessly inched closer to that source of warmth, breathing in the older man's unique smell before closing his eyes again.

\--

'I know what you're thinking but the answer is no.' Sothis' voice rang in his head, stopping him from indulged further into that idea, 'You can't take him away as a way to protect him. That is the Prince's fate, nothing you do can change it.'

Byleth tightened his hold on the smaller body in his lap and gently placed a kiss on that familiar blond hair as he had done many times before. This Dimitri was much smaller than his Dimitri, he couldn't even wrap his arms around the future Dimitri like how he did to the little one right now, and much more docile. He pouted a little thinking how the bigger Dimitri pinned him down on the bed the other night and literally 'ate' him from the inside out. Byleth's face suddenly heated up, laying in the cold hard ground like this made him missed Dimitri's touch more than anything, even though another Dimitri was snuggling in his lap.

"Hum." He flicked the sleeping boy's head lightly, making the boy moaned a little in his sleep, "How come a boy so cute grown up to be such a brute?"

Then something flickered in his mind.

'Sothis, will the future Dimitri remember any of this when we get back?'

'Hum, maybe and maybe not. Technically speaking, if your presence here is considered as an 'extraordinary', an existence that should not appear in this timeline, then the flow of time will erase all traces of you once you get back to the future. That said, the little prince will forget everything related to you during the past few days, to him, you will be nothing but a mere nameless mercenary who saved his life. But if you’re not...anyway, by the way he reacts around you at the Monastery, it seems that is the case, he doesn't seem to know you before you two officially met at the Remire Village.'

'Good. That's very good.' Byleth exclaimed in his head.

'What are you intending to do?' Sothis asked curiously after spotting the devil horns and tail suddenly appeared on her vessel.

'Just a little revenge, since the bigger one is no fun to tease anymore.'

\--

The next day, they arrived at a small village to exchange for a good horse, food and some necessary possessions to use along the way.

Byleth took a look at the horse they just bought, not the best one like in the capital but it would do, for now, at least it was strong enough to carry the both of them to Fraldarius. He adjusted the saddle a little before climbing on it first and then cast a glance at the young prince who was staring nervously at him from afar.

His mouth curved into a small, almost hard-to-see smile as he reached out his hand to the boy, "Come now. It'll be faster to ride with me."

The prince's face instantly heated up with the offer, waving his hands in the air and frantically shaking his head, "No..that would be inappropriate. We...we can ask them for another horse..."

"It's never a good idea to let them know we have money," Byleth explained calmly and gave the younger self of his student a stoic stare until he submitted to his suggestion.

The young Dimitri eventually came closer and let the older man's pulled him onto the saddle. Now sitting in front of the man with his back pressed against the other's chest made his heart felt like it was about to fly out of his chest.

Unlike the Faerghus heir's awkwardness, Byleth silently let out a wicked laugh behind him as he enjoyed the way Dimitri's ears reddened with embarrassment, he intentionally wrapped his free hand around smaller waist, making the poor boy yelped in surprise.

_ Ah, this takes me back when Dimitri was still much fun to tease. _

They rode in that awkward position for hours until they reach the edge of another forest, this time, Byleth knew this forest quite well to guide the horse forward.

Luckily for the poor Dimitri, the moment when he felt like he might faint from all the blood raising to his face, the horse came to a stop in front of a clear lake, dwelling in a secure location deep inside this forest.

The prince let out a relieved sigh when they finally got off the horse and stood on the ground again but his hard find composure soon crumbled as he glanced at the mercenary who began to remove his clothes.

“What...What are you doing?” Dimitri yelled in surprise, he was sure his face had become red again.

“Bath, of course.” The older man answered as a matter of fact and continued to take off his robe, placing it on a rock beside the lake before looking back at the speechless boy, “You should join me. You also need a bath.”

“No...I’m good...” The young prince shuttered but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t tear his gaze away from the older male, who was already done with the robe and started to take off his leg gauntlets and then his pants.

Never in his life, the crown prince of Faerghus met someone who dared to take their clothes off in front of him nor he knew a man’s body could be this mesmerizing. For a thirteen-year-old boy who almost reached his manhood, this sight stirred up something inside him that he never knew existed.

By the time, Byleth was completely naked, he glanced back at the little Dimitri and found the poor prince still kept his gaze on him, his baby face as red as a tomato, the sight made him want to tease the boy even more. He went into the water, it was not too cold and surprisingly shallow, the water only reached his waist. Once he settled in, he opened a smile at his soon-to-be student and coaxed again, “Come on in, the water is not too cold. I’ll wash your hair for you.”

And this time, the young prince didn’t utter any objection and obediently removed his clothes to join in the water with him.

Byleth pulled the prince closer, facing him, and started to rinse his hair with the lake water, his devil tail wagging at how red Dimitri's face had become.

He always loved Dimitri's hair, it felt nice in his hands, like holding a fragment of light itself. He enjoyed the way the wet blond hair frame around the little Dimitri's face, making him look even more like a porcelain doll. Byleth hated to admit it to himself but he was always captivated by Dimitri, many times he found himself simply stared at his favorite student's hair glowing in the sun or came up with a silly reason to invite the prince for tea just to admire his face up-closed, Dimitri would comply every time.

He didn't know when or how it started but his feelings for the young heir of Faerghus slowly changed to something deeper, it even took him by surprise.

He was terrified at first but now...Ah, how he missed his Dimitri, the Dimitri that could carry him with only one hand and showered him with love in their shared bedroom.

Not this little one, who still had a silly childish hairstyle and both of his eyes.

Byleth stopped midway once his hand touched the boy's right eyelid, still smooth without any trace of a deep scar on it, his action made the prince opened his eyes to look at him curiously.

"Is there a problem?"

"No, it was nothing," Byleth reassured the prince but deep down he missed the feeling when his hand gently caressed the scar on Dimitri's eyelid, sometimes he would lean in to kiss it and Dimitri immediately rewarded him with countless love bites on his body...speaking of which, his neck might still have the same marks from the other night.

"What are those?" Little Dimitri's question dragged Byleth back to the present where he stared dumbfounded at the boy who raised his hand to touch a spot on his neck.

"That...that is..." 

Why did his face suddenly heat up? 

Those are the bite marks the future Dimitri left on him, which still hadn't faded, but how would he explain this to the Dimitri in the past?

_ 'Your older self left those on me the night before I ran away and by the way, we're about to get married soon.' _

...That didn't sound too convincing no matter how you phrased it.

"It...it’s from my lover." Those were the words that blurted out of his mouth.

...Did he just admitted that Dimitri was his lover?

That realization only made his face flared up even more.

"I see." The younger Dimitri replied and lowered his head to look at the blue water, his blond bangs made it hard for Byleth to see his expression right now.

Much to his surprise, Byleth never anticipated the situation would turn out like this. The moment he thought that the little prince was still too young to know about these things, Dimitri suddenly grabbed his wrists and yelled at him wholeheartedly, "Tell me who is it? Tell me who do you think of when you make that face, Eisner!"

The expression the boy was making sent a chill down his spine, it was that of his dear student when he met him again after five long years of deep slumber - bloodthirsty, beastly and inhuman, for some unknown reason, the innocent little prince suddenly turned into a predator beast.

"Little prince..." Byleth said, shadowing hard, "Let go of my hands."

"No! Not until I know the name of that person." The boy snarled, tightened his hold on Byleth's wrists, making the older man whine in pain, "Then I will find them and..."

"Dimitri!" Byleth yelled the prince's name like he always did to the older one, and immediately, the boy froze and let go of his wrists.

The young Dimitri blinked a few times in confusion and once he recalled what he just did, shame written all over his face as he frantically turned around and headed to the shore, "I'm sorry, Eisner. I...I think I have enough bath for today."

'See! That's why I told you not to go overboard with your teasing.' Sothis suddenly sneered inside his head, making Byleth jump a little, 'A Beast is still a beast no matter how young they look. Even if he's just a cub now, you should know that the prince is still a predator deep inside.'

For once, Byleth regretted not listening to Sothis' advice.

\--

Later that day, once they settled beside the campfire, Byleth busied himself with preparing their dinner, the small rabbits he just caught a moment ago, while Dimitri stared blankly into nothingness and refused to utter even a single word. Though, the prince’s gaze would occasionally drifted toward the mercenary, there was a mixture of feelings in those large blue eyes, the kind of feelings that a thirteen-year-old boy should not have.

The atmosphere became awkward between them after the evening’s incident, Byleth sweated nervously, for this might be the first time he felt ashamed of himself. He didn’t want to be the reason that caused Dimitri distressed or suffer more pain than he already burdened on his shoulders, be that the young prince who just lost his family or the man he knew 10 years in the future, no matter what timelines, Dimitri was still his most important person.

He didn't want the little prince to get hurt with that newfound feelings for him, because he couldn't return it, at least not until 10 years later. 

“Prince Dimitri...I...” Byleth decided to speak first to disturb the silence between them.

“You don’t have to say anything, Eisner. I apologize for my behavior earlier,” Dimitri cut him off with a forced smile and without warning, the boy lunged forward and tackled him to the ground, "But please don't hate me, Eisner... like they do...I...I don't want to be loathed by you too."

Byleth pulled the crying prince closer to his chest and gently patted his blond hair, "I don't hate you, little Prince and I never will. No matter what wrong deeds you do, no matter how you become in the future, I will support you with all my might."

_ And I will walk with you till the end of time. _

Those were the words from the bottom of his heart, his promise to himself as soon as he met Dimitri again after five years. Even though he knew the Little Dimitri would forget everything he said by tomorrow, they would be nothing but strangers the next time they met in Remire Village, despite that, he wouldn't hesitate to give Dimitri as much solace as he needed right now. 

If Dimitri had said something, it would be too low for him to hear over his muffled crying. The young prince cried himself to sleep in his lap as they spent the night snuggling like that, warming each other in the chilly night.

—

After a long and emotional journey, they finally set foot on the Fraldarius land, the safe haven for Dimitri to grow up under the protection of Lord Rodrigue until he was old enough to attend the Officer Academy. 

And this was also the time they must part ways.

‘Don’t let Rodrigue see your face. Maybe I’m too cautious but the fewer people know your existence in this timeline, the better.’ Sothis suggested.

‘I understand.’ Byleth nodded his head and pulled the cloak he happened to bought alongside the other clothes to cover up his green hair, then he turned around to face the young prince, who was holding his hand and looked at him like a lost puppy.

“We have arrived, little prince. Go through this gate and you’ll be safe. Lord Rodrigue will protect you.” Byleth said gently and proceed to lead the boy through the gate and toward the Fraldarius castle. 

"Stay here. The Lord will be with you shortly." 

After informing the gatekeepers about the arrival of the crown prince, Byleth hesitated for a moment before removing his hand from the prince's grasp and quickly made his leave.

The moment that warm hand let go of him, Dimitri froze, feeling warmth suddenly left him, and immediately, he ran after the mercenary. The tight coiling in his stomach told him if he didn't, he would never be held by that hand again.

"Eisner! Wait! Where are you going?" he tried to catch up with his savior but the man seemed to blend in with the sea of the people of Fraldarius. 

"Eisner! Please don't leave me behind like they did! Eisner! Eisner!!!" The young heir of Faerghus screamed desperately, everything started to blur in front of him, he couldn't see the happy citizens of Fraldarius enjoying their morning all around him, he couldn't see the children playing in the market, he couldn't even see the road at his feet, all he saw was the man that saved his life slowly dissolved into the light and within seconds, that black figure just vanished into thin air.

The prince's scream had caught the intention of the crowd. Upon seeing his small form among the people, one of the citizens spoke up, his voice trembling with emotion, "Prince Dimitri! Is...is that you?"

Dimitri stopped in his tracks and turned around to see Lord Rodrigue, who quickly dismount off his white horse and ran toward to pull him into a tight embrace.

"Thanks the Goddess! It is you, my prince! I thought we lost you...Oh, thank the Goddess for protecting our prince and bring him back to us..." The Fraldarius Lord continued to mumble incomprehensive words between his sobbing.

Dimitri should be happy to see his father's most trusted friend again but his heart kept nagging at him to run after Eisner as soon as possible, or else he would regret it for the rest of his life.

"Sorry, Rodrigue. I have to go find him!" The young prince yanked himself away from the Lord's tight embrace and dashed forward the direction where his heart told him to go.

" Prince Dimitri! Wait!!!"

\--

Byleth never knew leaving would be this hard, it took him tremendous effort to let go of little Dimitri's hand and walk away, not to mention the pain he felt when the boy running after him and screaming his name only made it even harder.

_ I'm sorry, Little Dimitri. I can't stay here. _

He adjusted the saddle of the horse and proceed to climb on it, his plan to escape was going placidly if not for the desperate scream that stopped him midway.

"EISNER!"

Byleth froze and shut his eyes in defeat, Dimitri's relentlessness never failed to impress him. 

Slowly, he let out a long sigh before turning around to face the younger version of the man he loved, who was crying his heart out with tears still rolling down his cheeks, "Please don't go!"

"You should go back to the Lord, Little Prince." He scolded and quietly watched as the prince ran toward him and grabbed on the helm of his cloak.

"Why do you have to leave? Please stay with me!" The boy begged wholeheartedly.

"I'm sorry. I have to go back...to him." Byleth answered with a sad smile.

Dimitri flinched a little at the loving tone in the older man's voice, fighting back his newly emerged anger, he asked, voice ragged and trembling, "Is that man that important to you?"

The fable expressionless mercenary was taken aback by that question, and without thinking, he nodded his head and uttered the words that he never dared to say to the older self of the boy in front of him, "I love him, more than anything in the world."

Byleth's heart throbbed at the broken expression on the young prince's face, who eventually removed his hands from his cloak and lowered his head to the ground.

_ See, now you're the one hurting him _. He laughed bitterly to himself.

After what felt like decades, little Dimitri finally looked up at him with a forced smile and asked, a faint hope etching in his voice, "Will I be able to see you again?"

The last time he saw that look in Dimitri's eyes were on that dreadful day at the Battle of Gronder Field, after the death of Rodrigue, Dimitri looked so fragile, so weak, like just a wrong word from him could break the Lion Prince into thousands of pieces.

Byleth felt a knot rising in his throat, he wanted to seek advice from the Goddess but Sothis was surprisingly quiet today, so he just had to say the first words that came to his mind, "Go to Gagged Mach Monastery. "

His body then moved on its own as he leaned down and placed a gentle kiss on the prince's lips, "Live. So we can meet again."

_ And please love me like you always do. _

Byleth then took the chance Dimitri was drowning in the aftermath of his first kiss to climb on the saddle of the horse and ride away, knowing that longing gaze still glued on his back until he disappeared into the bright daylight.

_ Goodbye, my little prince. _

\--

Byleth didn't ride long, once he reached a quiet spot in a nearby field, he got off the horse and set it free. Taking in the view of the Fraldarius castle from afar for the last time, he closed his eyes and activated the Divine Pulse.

The pull of the Pulse went smoothly this time and within just a few minutes, he felt his feet landed on the ground again.

'Did we make it?' He asked the goddess as soon as he opened his eyes and observed the view around him, still that vast green field with the Fraldarius castle just a few miles ahead.

'I think so.' Sothis eventually answered, 'For now let's just head back to the capital.'

'I agree. Dimitri must be worried sick about me right now.' With that said, he headed toward the direction of the capital city Fhirdiad, his heart yearning for the comfort of his bed and the warmth of his lover.

\--

"Professor! Oh thanks the Goddess, you're back!"

Greeting him once he stepped into the castle was not something he wanted to see after a long trip home, and especially at midnight. His former Blue Lions students, each had a dreadful expression on their faces, cried helplessly (well not all of them) and came forward to give him a tearful welcome back hug.

"Professor, I'm so glad you're safe. You don't know how worried I was when you just disappeared right in front of me." Ashe smiled brightly despite tears still streaming down his cheeks.

But before he could say anything to comfort the silver-haired student, Felix interfered their heartwarming reunion to drop fatal news on him, "Save your tears for later. Now that you're back, Professor. Do something with the Boar!"

Felix's words rang a bell in his head as he immediately questioned the new Fraldarius Lord, "What happened to Dimitri, Felix?"

"He turns back to the crazed beast after he heard you disappeared." Felix sneered, "The Boar goes crazy, throwing things at the servants, threatening to kill the soldiers if they can't find you. He went to that forest you went missing and literally slaughtered every living thing that went within sight. We managed to drag him home just now when Ingrid suggested him to wait at your door in case you come back."

"His Majesty is still waiting in front of your room. He told me to leave him alone so I waited here with the others." Dudue continued, he appeared calm but anyone knew him well could detect a hint of worry in his voice. 

"Yeah, Professor, now that you come back, please do us a favor." Sylvain grabbed his professor's shoulder and said earnestly, his expression serious, "Next time, if you're gonna leave without saying anything like that, Professor, please take Dimitri with you."

\--

Byleth sighed and quickened his steps on the staircase toward his private bedroom after telling his former students to go to bed.

He didn't know how to feel about the commotion Dimitri caused after he went missing. 

Should he feel worried that Dimitri would go back to the mad Prince if he was not around? Or should he be happy that Dimitri loved him too much that he would go to such lengths to find him?

But all his doubt and worry, all his sorrow and weariness vanished once his eyes spotted that figure slumping at the door in front of his room.

Dimitre whipped his head up immediately when he heard his footsteps echoing in the hallway and Byleth's breath stopped.

"Professor?" Dimitri asked uncertainty but after seeing the face of his beloved slowly revealing itself into the moonlight, he didn't wait any seconds to get up and hauled that familiar figure into his arms, tight and secure like he always does, he feared if he didn't, his dear professor would disappear from his sight again.

"You come back, Byleth. You come back to me." Dimitri showered Byleth with kisses all over his face while his large hands frantically searched for any kind of injury on his lover's body, tears rolling down his cheeks as he mumbled desperate words between his sobbing, "I don't know what I'd do if I lost you. Please don't leave me like that again. Please!"

Dimitri's words hurt, like a stab between his ribs, it pierced through his already aching heart. Byleth wrapped his arms around his lover and mumbled comfort words against his ear.

They stood like that for a long moment, each trying to savor the other's presence as much as possible, warming one another in the freezing night of Fhirdiad with endless kisses and heartfelt touches until Byleth was the first one to break free.

He hungrily observed the man he loved, taking in every detail on that perfect face, every emotion flashing in that remaining blue eye. His heart suddenly beat happily in his chest once he realized the way Dimitri looked at him was exactly like that of the little Dimitri, full of love, admiration, and longing.

The similarity caused him to chuckle lightly as he teased, knowing full well that the present Dimitri probably had forgotten everything about their encounter in the past, "You already grown this big but still a crybaby inside, my little prince."

Dimitri froze upon hearing his words and stared speechlessly at him for a long minute, many emotions Byleth couldn't describe flicker in the icy blue eye. At first, he thought Dimitri must be exhausted with the lack of sleep but he soon regard his lover with worried when Dimitri kept staring at him like he was searching for something in his face.

"What happens?" Byleth asked, raising his hand to caress the cold cheek gently.

"Where have you been, Professor?" Dimitri asked and placed his big hand over his professor's smaller one, Byleth could detect hope and happiness in his voice.

"I...I went helping the town people with some bandits...near Fraldarius." He lied and averted his eyes, he never liked to deceive his students but this time, he had to.

With that said, Byleth moved his hand away from Dimtri's and proceed to open the door of his room, maybe his former student would drop this subject after a good night's sleep.

But Byleth didn't even make it to the door when a strong hand grabbed his wrist and pulled him back into that familiar warm embrace again.

"Dimitri!" He yelped but his scolding died out in his lips once he saw the expression on Dimitri's face, not only full of heated love but also of pain and sorrow mixed with years of yearning.

"I've been waiting for the moment you finally remember about our past, Byleth." Dimitri's lips curved into a smirk as he said his next words, "Or should I say, Eisner."

"!!"

Sothis...Someone...Anyone, please told him he didn't just dig a grave for himself in the past few days!

**Author's Note:**

> Part 2 is coming. How little prince makes his Professor fall for him and ofc revenges for seducing him and then ran off lol


End file.
